Note:
Thank you, Kelly Goodwin dear, for gifting a gachapon to this book yesterday. Muaah!!
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Sophie, who was trapped in the memory of Nicholas, couldn't hold back her tears. She walked slowly towards her two sons, who seemed to be looking confused at each other.
Sophie knelt down and gently touched her sons' cheeks. They really made her see Nicholas again.
"Oh, God." She hugged Luciel and Jan tightly and then she wept. It was happy tears.
The members of the Blood River pack who saw Luciel's and Jan's forms immediately realized that the two children had absolutely no resemblance to the Alpha or Luna.
Many people started whispering among each other and letting out snarky comments. The crowd of guests suddenly turned into a swarm of wasps.
Some insulted Sophie as a lowly, undignified woman, and nothing more than a female who slept with another man that was not her mate. Even the two innocent children did not escape their insults.
It certainly ignited anger in Leland's heart. The man turned around and stared at them intently. The Alpha released a killing aura that instantly silenced the mouths of all the wasps.
This time Leland managed to silence them all, but for how long?
After the situation calmed down, Leland looked back at Sophie, who had just finished dressing Jan and Luciel. The woman looked unaffected or maybe… was pretending to be unaffected?
Now, Leland turned to Jan and Luciel and smiled as the two children looked up at him.
"Happy birthday," he said, and touched the heads of the two children affectionately.
Luciel and Jan looked very much like ordinary human children. The tunic that their mother chose for them made them look like two sons of a human noble family.
No, in fact, they even looked like two human princes.
Seeing the boys in their human forms made Leland feel bitter and jealous. He would never see what his own sons look like. This made him clench his fists to the sides and thought about revenge. He still didn't have proof but he was convinced that his mother was behind it.
He couldn't after Isolde and force her to confess because of Sophie's condition. But now that his mate had become better, maybe he could start thinking about punishing Isolde.
Yes, revenge wouldn't bring back Morgan and Emery, but it would make him less bitter. Sophie looked up and noticed her mate's expression. She furrowed her brows.
Usually, Leland didn't show what he was feeling on the surface. He always looked as calm as the ocean when he was around her.
The only emotion she saw from him was anger when he thought she was in danger, and that anger would always disappear when he looked at her.
Maybe he was worried that she would be scared by his outburst? Sophie would never fear him. She knew his heart.
"Leland..." Sophie's heart sank when she realized Leland was looking at Luciel and Jan with a sad expression. She realized he must be feeling so deep in sadness for his emotion to escape to the surface like this.
Sophie could guess that Leland must be missing their own sons who never made it to see the world. At a time like this, she knew she had to be the strong one. Sophie walked to Leland and clasped his hand with hers, and she whispered, "I love you."
Leland blinked and turned to see Sophie. He realized she could tell he was being emotional and this made him feel ashamed. He should have had hidden his feelings better.
"I love you too," he smiled at her and hugged her waist.
He tilted his head toward the boys who now struggled to walk on two feet because they were not used to it and now they were looking at Sophie with their best puppy eyes.
Leland explained to Sophie. "Ahem... they want to ask your permission to take off their clothes and shift back into their wolf forms."
"Oh... really?" Sophie noticed that too. Luciel and Jan didn't look comfortable with their clothes even though the material was very soft and it was supposed to feel really good. "Ahh... they are not used to being humans..."
"Correct," Leland agreed. "When I was younger I also still preferred to be in my wolf form than my human form. It took me some time to get comfortable in my own skin as a human."
"Ahh.. that's right," Sophie sighed. "I remember now. We lived together for more than eight years when we were children but not once did I ever see your human form."
"Well, I did transform several times when you were not looking,"
"Oh, you did?" Sophie's eyes bulged. "Why?"
"Well... " Leland cleared his throat. "... because I was naked?"
Sophie laughed when she heard his answer. That made total sense. "I am glad I am finally lucky enough to see you naked."
Leland smiled when he heard her funny words. Slowly, his face blushed. He didn't know why but during this especially sad time, she managed to lift his mood just by saying she was lucky to see him naked.
"Well... you can see me naked anytime," the Alpha replied solemnly.
This time, it was Sophie's face that turned pink from blushing.
She and Leland were still being intimate even after she was sick but it was nothing like what they had in the first year of their marriage. Leland was too worried that she would die.
In the past year, things had become much better. She was almost healthy and they were having sex regularly, but he always avoided pregnancy. Even though he really wanted more children from Sophie, her safety was much more important to him.
He wouldn't be able to live with himself if Sophie had a difficult pregnancy just because he wanted children. He was okay to never have a child of his own since he loved Luciel and Jan and they were amazing children.
However, tonight, seeing how much the boys looked like their biological father, Leland felt that longing again. This made him feel ashamed of himself.
Sophie cupped his face and looked at him with a sheepish grin. "Can I see you naked tonight?"
Leland didn't know this, but Sophie had been talking to their healers many times in the past months, to check whether she was healthy enough for pregnancy.
They kept checking her health and earlier today they said she had almost fully recovered and could start planning for pregnancy, if she wanted.
Of course, Sophie wanted it. She planned to tell Leland tonight that they had to start trying.
Leland's eyes were fixated on Sophie's. He couldn't believe his ears. His sweet mate suddenly talking seductively like this made all his sadness go without a trace.
He couldn't care less about everyone else around them. He immediately pulled her in for a kiss and he did it so passionately that parents had to cover their children's eyes.
Many single women pressed their lips with bulged eyes and instantly felt jealous, seeing the glorious display of affection of the Alpha toward his Luna.
She was the luckiest woman in the world, they all thought in unison.
It was obvious that the children were not even her mate's but he took care of them much better than most biological fathers they knew. And they could see he worshipped the ground she walked on.
So lucky.
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